Jonathan (Jack) Hawes Email and Phone Number

Electrical hardware engineer and backup flight operator/engineer for a program to develop a bistatic, X-band (8-12 GHz) radar imaging system. A sizable portion of this effort involved a mechanical redesign of the radar duplexer to improve ease of testing, accessibility during operation, and greater flexibility and reliability in the field. o Developed and tested PCB schematics using Altium to handle power distribution, communication processing through an FPGA, and signal distribution to… Show more Electrical hardware engineer and backup flight operator/engineer for a program to develop a bistatic, X-band (8-12 GHz) radar imaging system. A sizable portion of this effort involved a mechanical redesign of the radar duplexer to improve ease of testing, accessibility during operation, and greater flexibility and reliability in the field. o Developed and tested PCB schematics using Altium to handle power distribution, communication processing through an FPGA, and signal distribution to components within the duplexer.o Developed FPGA firmware on a Xilinx Spartan-7 using Xilinx Vivado and Xilinx Vitis. The timing-critical hardware portion of this firmware interpreted and processed high-speed serial SPI communication from the main radar controller and controlled active components on the duplexer accordingly. The Microblaze-powered software portion monitored various aspects of the duplexer, such as reading temperature through an IIC device, and allowed for user input and overriding and the hardware for purposes of debugging and testing through serial UART connections.o Flew as a backup operating and flight engineer with the radar during the collection phase of the program, monitoring the system for any errors or issues during operation and communicating with the operators on the other aircraft to help coordinate collection timing and the resolution of any problems with the radar during flight. Show less

Designed a set of PCBs and a Circuit Assembly as well as a test plan for use in total dose testing to compare the radiation performance of various manufacturers and models of TL431-type components. This testing will enable VPT to qualify and use these components for certain space and radiation applications.

Key member and eventual leader of a 50-student engineering design team that competes in the annual Collegiate Wind Competition to build a turbine and develop a business plan for a 100-MW wind farm. Applied the skills and knowledge I acquired across various sub-teams over my first 2 years to become a team project manager and technical lead, guiding Virginia Tech to a 2nd place national finish in 2019.2018-2020: Project Manager and Technical Lead – developed vision for technical design of… Show more Key member and eventual leader of a 50-student engineering design team that competes in the annual Collegiate Wind Competition to build a turbine and develop a business plan for a 100-MW wind farm. Applied the skills and knowledge I acquired across various sub-teams over my first 2 years to become a team project manager and technical lead, guiding Virginia Tech to a 2nd place national finish in 2019.2018-2020: Project Manager and Technical Lead – developed vision for technical design of the turbine and ensured proper completion and integration of all sub-systems2018: Power Electronics Team Member – designed Arduino control system2016-2017: Drive Team Member – selected generator and helped design driveshaft Show less

Performed modeling of large motor and non-motor safety loads of a nuclear power plant for the purposes of an emergency diesel generator transient analysis. Validated motor models against plant test data and tuned the models to match physical behavior.Prepared a calculation of cable ampacity, impedance, and current distribution for a nuclear power plant.Helped develop requirements for the safety system of a large-scale battery energy storage facility.

Performed analysis of open phase events affecting nuclear power plant electrical safety systems to determine proper equipment setpoints, so that the plant has a lower chance of experiencing a nuisance trip in an otherwise safe operable condition.Developed a simulation model of overcurrent relays in EMTP-RV for use in future nuclear power plant electrical analysis, allowing for faster and more efficient simulations of plant systems.Performed part of an independent third-party… Show more Performed analysis of open phase events affecting nuclear power plant electrical safety systems to determine proper equipment setpoints, so that the plant has a lower chance of experiencing a nuisance trip in an otherwise safe operable condition.Developed a simulation model of overcurrent relays in EMTP-RV for use in future nuclear power plant electrical analysis, allowing for faster and more efficient simulations of plant systems.Performed part of an independent third-party review of a nuclear plant open phase analysis to determine if the analysis was conducted properly and to recommend improvements.Calculated and analyzed transmission and distribution system voltage unbalance from sources around the country to determine typical maximum voltage unbalances experienced, as a reference for future calculations. Show less

Developed test software in LabVIEW for electronic hardware certification on the LM 100-J aircraft. Responsible for moving the logic devices through all steps in the FAA certification process in a limited time frame, bringing the project forward so that it was ahead of schedule. Also assisted in reliability testing of backup electrical power systems of aircraft.

Participated in the National Science Foundation-funded Transportation Electrification Research Experience for Undergrads. I developed the test setup to examine IGBT module reliability in extreme operating conditions through the use of active condition monitoring. My work helped move the project froma conceptual design to a working model, so that the PhD student I worked with could take over.